El Salvador offers Venezuela prisoner swap involving US deportees

In a significant diplomatic move, El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele has proposed a prisoner exchange with Venezuela. He has offered to repatriate 252 Venezuelans who were deported by the United States and are currently imprisoned in El Salvador. In return, Bukele is asking for the release of the same number of political prisoners held in Venezuela. This proposal was made public through a post on social media, where Bukele directly addressed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. He pointed out that many of the Venezuelans deported to El Salvador have been accused of serious crimes, including 'rape and murder'. In contrast, Bukele argued that the political prisoners in Venezuela are incarcerated solely for opposing Maduro, whose re-election last year has been widely criticized and deemed controversial. The proposal has sparked a heated debate between the two nations. Venezuela's chief prosecutor, Tarek William Saab, responded to Bukele's offer with skepticism. He questioned the nature of the crimes attributed to the deported Venezuelans and whether they had been given a fair trial or access to legal representation. The Venezuelan government maintains that it does not recognize the existence of political prisoners, a claim that has been challenged by various human rights organizations. In his social media post, Bukele stated, 'I want to propose you [Maduro] a humanitarian agreement calling for the repatriation of 100% of the 252 Venezuelans who were deported, in exchange for the release. of the identical number from among the thousands of political prisoners that you hold'. He also mentioned nearly 50 prisoners from other countries, including US citizens, as part of this proposed exchange. Recently, over 200 Venezuelans were deported from the US to El Salvador. The Trump administration has accused these individuals of being members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang. The US government provides financial support to El Salvador to keep these deported individuals in a high-security facility known as the Terrorism Confinement Center. Bukele has gained a reputation for his bold leadership style, even referring to himself as 'the world's coolest dictator'. His popularity surged after he implemented a rigorous anti-gang campaign, leading to his re-election last year. Conversely, Maduro has condemned the US's actions in deporting Venezuelans to El Salvador, labeling it as 'kidnapping' and a 'massive abuse' of human rights. Since Trump took office in January, his strict immigration policies have faced numerous legal challenges. The White House has described these challenges to mass deportations as 'meritless litigation'. Trump has invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to facilitate the deportation of accused Venezuelan gang members, a law that grants the president the authority to detain and deport individuals from 'enemy' nations without the usual legal processes. Historically, this act has been utilized only three times, all during wartime.